What Is Askfm: A New App for Kids To Suffer Cyberbullying?

Why is ask.fm app popular?

Anything that brings like-minded people together gives them some vibes. That’s no different for ask.fm app. What attributes to its popularity?

• The joy of you asking questions and getting tones of answers is thrilling
• You decide to be anonymous or not, as you ask your questions or give your answers
• It is a good platform to search for friends and follow those you feel are worth it
• Likewise, this app enables you to view all those that have liked your answers or questions
• It offers the perfect environment to invite friends and follows as you express yourself freely
• This app is also highly integrated with other popular sites like Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook. You can, therefore, join via all these other accounts
• And for any annoying dude, worry less! Just toggle off anonymous persons and their questions.

Is ask.fm app safe?

Talking of safety, apps have tremendous benefits but this does not mean that they can be tools for compromising people’s personal information. Likewise, they can also throw your kid into a disarray of troubles. Here are some dangers associated with ask.fm app.

1. Addiction

The joy of posting and question and getting numerous answers from friends can slowly glue one to the digital space. Users will want to explore more than their heads can carry, wanting to know all the nitty gritty of life. Of cause, the questioning can never end and one will be addicted to the app.

2. Cyberbullying

This is due to the app’s anonymous nature. Other users may send hurtful messages on the pretext that their identity is not known. In the long run, a victim is overwhelmed and faces many dangers.

3. Sexually explicit content

Again, the anonymity opens doors to sharing of explicit content. After all, one can post about anything and respondents can give any form of answers. This also includes sending text, videos, and pictures.

4. Drug abuse

Since the app helps in finding friends both near you and far away, some may use such an opportunity to connect with you physically. With such trends, you end up in a mix of all sorts of manners like drug addicts. Others also use the platform to lure users to drug and alcohol usage.

5. Violence and scariness

Ask.fm app opens a platform for kids to vent their anger, hate, and other bad languages. Likewise, popular kids become more popular, leaving all the rest to follow in their suite. What follows is a lack of self-esteem for the affected kids. And in some dare circumstances, such individuals may commit suicide if their worries are not tackled at the right time.

Negative short reviews from the Internet

According to commonsensemedia.org, parents have continued to show great concern over other users’ behaviors from ask.fm app.

It is linked to suicides

Commented by an adult, this parent says that many children’s suicides are linked to this site. Children are unmonitored and so, they can say anything including insulting and verbally attacking other users.

Bullying

Another concerned parent echoes that this “site’s settings and filters do nothing to prevent horrible behavior”. Furthermore, their settings do little in preventing some kids from bashing and tainting other’s reputations.

Violence

The site also gives worries to parents who think that it is an open invitation for kids to vent their anger and criticize others. In the end, kids with low self-esteem fall victim to such insults.

Vulgar language

Anyone is free to express their views, including those full of sexuality and vulgar language. It hence promotes sharing of inappropriate stuff like pornographic materials and the like. This is a great concern for most parents.

Source: https://www.commonsensemedia.org/website-reviews/askfm/user-reviews/adult

What age is ask.fm app for and can kids bypass it?

Ask.fm app classifies its age for users from 13 years old. However, it appears that most of its content is inappropriate for the age of 13 years. Notwithstanding, this is a rule that is likely to be bypassed.

What does this mean?

Note that this is a classification that is set by the website’s developer. But again, there is no independent body that oversees this rule. So many kids will just pick on the age limit choice, 13, and go ahead to sign up without further restrictions.

What can parents do to protect kids?

The ball still falls on the parents’ courts. Even though some parents will set proper guidelines on the usage of such apps, some may not. It is, however, important to give your child the best approach. Here are a few points to help parents in ensuring safety.

1. Discourage your kid from online participation

To evade addiction, it is wise for kids to use online information for constructive work like study. As a parent, you can discourage your kids from spending much time on social media. Again, educate them to minimize their online conversations.

2. Set a common room for online engagement

Parents can also put up a common room within the house which is easily accessible by any member of the family. With this, you can enhance security by letting your kids access these social media apps in the presence of a guardian or yourself.

3. Use parental controls

The first two options may be tricky especially if you are working for longer hours and there is no one to take control over your kids’ online actions. Again, they may get access via their friends’ gadgets, making it difficult to control what they see. Don’t worry! You can engage parental control apps for maximum security. An example is the FamiSafe Parental Control App.

Introducing FamiSafe

Parents are spending sleepless nights especially with the high rate of technological advances. FamiSafe parental control app comes in handy to ease such pain. It is encompassed with high-tech ability to prevent cyberbullying, and aid in keeping your kid safe online. The beauty is that you don’t have to be present to keep an eye on your kid. Some simple configurations on your kid’s phone are all you need. Its main features include;

App block & Usage

You’ll be amazed at how well advanced your kid is when it comes to technological usage. The App block and Usage feature let you keep an eye on the threatening Apps. Some of which are full of inappropriate content as per your child’s age. Use this to check which apps are mostly used and whether they are appropriate for your kid. If not, block asap!

Activity Report

This feature is your third eye when it comes to knowing which apps are mostly engaged in your child’s phone. It will help you to keep your child under control by limited those apps that he/she is highly obsessed with. Again, you can know whether they spend their entire free time on ask.fm app or other apps.

Browser History & Web Filter

Online games and other activities may interfere with your child’s normal development. The browser history feature makes it easy for you to remotely keep your child away from dangerous sites. Why? You can know via the history tab, which sites he/she visited. Likewise, engage the Web filter to bar your kid from accessing certain websites. These could be those promoting online gambling, violence, drug abuse, and other inappropriate activities.

Conclusion

Judging from above, it appears not easy for parents to secure their kid’s safety while they are online. There are numerous dangers that teens face from apps like ask.fm app. And for this, parents have a long way to go given that technological advances are also exploding with each passing day. This article has tackled the major dangers that kids face while going about their social media lives. However, in the midst to accord them security, it requires lots of attention.

But not anymore with the FamiSafe parental control app!

Engage this app for total peace of mind whether you are out working or away on vacation.